A bluesy duo with Beaumont music history

I was about 16 when I first visited Beaumont’s notorious jam rooms. At the time I was dating a bass player who was way too old for me — I’m still sorry, Mom.

Through this mostly regrettable relationship, I discovered the following: 1. Never date a musician, or at least don’t aim to. 2. Blind Melon is amazing once you quit listening to “No Rain” and move on to “Mouthful of Cavities” and 3.

The downtown jam rooms are a den of mystery (that bathroom, for example), music and lots of boys.

I remember hearing Ryan Gist and Trevor Batson — their music coming through those jam room doors — before meeting them. To this day I look up to them because they still get excited about music and can transform a hole-in-the-wall bar into a place where you can either call up (or call off) your demons. Their energy is all that stuff that makes the South what it is — dirty, loud, soulful and maybe a little drunk.

Q. You two have been fixtures in the local music scene for years. I remember seeing you at the jam rooms in various bands back when you both had much longer hair. Can you give me a little peak into what you were both doing say, 10 years ago in music, versus what you are doing now?Batson: For me, the difference between now and then is the experience, and that’s something you can’t buy. I’m way more musically open now than I was back then and a much different player, and I think that’s a great thing.

Gist: Ten years ago I was in an awesome band called Crazy Ivans and going to audio engineering school in Houston. I’d come back to Beaumont every weekend to play live shows at the Vortex with awesome bands like Sourmash, Sharks From Space, The Molly Maguires and Bullets On Broadway, to name a few. It was a wonderful scene going on back then, and I had a wonderful time. The Crazy Ivans were more of a rock band than a blues band. However, the guitarist Mike Ward did lay down some tasty blues licks on everything we did.

Nowadays Trevor and I are in a band called The Killawatts. We play more of a blues-based Southern rock with some reggae thrown in for good measure. I would say that over the years, there were certainly negative circumstances that could have been handled better or addressed with more tact.

A band is a lot like being married to four or five people. When you’re younger and shooting for the stars, you don’t step back and review before you proceed. That can cause problems. Plus, you don’t know back then what you know now. I’m certain that the music in me personally has a piece of everyone I’ve ever gotten the honor to rock out with — and vice versa, I hope.

I’m very grateful to them all to be where I’m at as a musician, that’s for sure. So I would say that it’s a positive change. I’m more privy to smell bull—- before I step in it now, but I wouldn’t know the smell if I hadn’t gone through some of those bad patches. Getting old as a musician is pretty groovy, all in all.

Q Let’s talk about the blues. With the recent passing of legend Jerry LaCroix — and the phrase “blue-eyed soul” coming back into our collective consciousness — how is it that you two boys have such a handle on this gritty, soulful sound and who or what are your main influences?Gist: I was sad to see another awesome musician cross over. Jerry had a presence and a charisma when he performed that was matched by few. I could only wish to sing with so much passion. My mom had Second Coming and Edgar Winter’s White Trash on vinyl coming up, and I have some favorite songs like “Still Alive And Well” and “Keep Playing That Rock ’n’ Roll.” I got to see him with The Boogie Kings at The Palace around 1991, and he and Duane Yates really crooned that old blue-eyed soul with such gumption.

I’m not sure where I specifically got the blues grit from. My mom always had the coolest music to listen to. When I was nine I saw “La Bamba” and fell in love with rock n’n’ roll. I immediately wanted a guitar and to be able to rock. Ritchie Valens led to Buddy Holly. Buddy Holly led to Jimi Hendrix and Led Zeppelin. Jimi led me to Freddie King. I found out that I had the same birthday as he did and once

I heard his blues, for some reason I could really identify with them. I heard a whole story in one wailing note. It felt personal.

And he growled and strained and laughed his words, so I think that’s where I get it from.

Batson: Speaking for myself, it’s just something I feel inside. Once you’re onstage doing your thing and you’ve got the attention of the audience, and you’re locked in, there is a connecting energy that takes place between the player and the listener that can’t really be duplicated any other way. It’s an incredible energy to feel.

I’m a huge bluesy jam band fan: Derek Trucks/Gov’t Mule, and I love old Robert Johnson and Muddy Waters stuff as well.

Q OK, do you mind gushing about yourselves for a bit? Convince Beaumont to come out on Saturday to see you two make magic happen.Batson: If you come see us, you’ll catch a fairly wide variety of music – rock, funk, blues, reggae, jazz. And they’re mostly original tunes.

That’s one thing that sets us apart from a lot of other acts- we just do our thing and people seem to like it. Ryan is easily the best songwriter I’ve ever had the pleasure of knowing and playing with, so that keeps it easy for me.